It wasn't her first Christmas alone, nor would it be her last one however this Christmas seemed lonelier than before. Bou-chan was gone on tours over the holidays with his band. Ayako had gone home to stay with her family for the next week. John was home in Australia. Masako...well, Mai wasn't quite sure where Masako was but she knew she was out of the city for the holidays. It was the same for Yasuhara as well. Even Lin was gone, and Naru had left for England a week ago to spend his time with his family since it would be their second year without Gene around.
The thought of Naru's beautiful older twin brother caused a dull pain to resonate through her chest. She missed Gene and she often wished she would've gotten to know him better for who he was since at the time she knew him she only knew him as 'dream Naru'. Mai's gaze became melancholy as she stared into the lights on the small Christmas tree in the corner of her living room until a knock at her door made her jump in surprise. The girl frowned in confusion as she wondered to herself who that could be. Perhaps one of her friends? "Coming!" She called, but that couldn't be possible because her friends were all with their families tonight.
When Mai got to the door she opened it, leaving the chain latch lock in place as she did so she could peek out just in case it was some drunken old man. Brown doe eyes grew round as she took in the figure outside of her door. "H-hang on just a second!" Mai said in a rather high pitched tone as she undid the latch on her door to fully open it. On the other side of the door stood her boss, Oliver Davis himself, or as she liked to call him, Naru. As usual everything he wore was black, except for the dark blue scarf he wore around his neck that went well with his eyes. "C-come i-in!" She said as she ushered him in. He had to be cold considering he was covered in snowflakes because of how bad it was starting to snow outside.
"Sorry for coming over so suddenly, I thought I would stop by on my way back home from the office." Naru said casually as he looked down at his brunette assistant who nearly slammed her fingers in the door.
Mai gawked at her boss in disbelief. What? Was this a dream? Had she fallen asleep? The girl pinched herself then flinched, nope this was reality.
"What are you doing?"
Mai looked up to find her boss looking down at her with a dark brow raised in confusion. "I- uhm I...oh nothing! Nothing! Uhmm, so what made you want to stop by? Are you feeling okay?" She asked as he handed her a small bag, "Ohh...what's this?" She asked as she looked up at him totally bewildered. What in the world was he doing here?!
"Look inside and find out." He said flatly as he took off his scarf and then his jacket before taking off his shoes.
Mai's cheeks turned red and she stared at Naru in confusion for a long moment before opening the bag and reaching down inside. What she pulled out was a velvet box that contained a silver bracelet with many different charms hanging around it. "T-t-this is for me?" She managed to stutter out in utter bewilderment. Sure Mai and Naru's relationship had changed in a positive way, maybe they had even grown a little closer over the year but for him to give her such a gift seemed so unlike him.
"Who else would it be for?" Was his answer, "Luella suggested I get it for you, she sends her regards and so does Madoka."
The girl's cheeks turned a deeper shade of red as she found it hard to form words, "T-t-thank you! It's gorgeous!" Mai said in a clumsy manner before putting on the bracelet, "Thank you again I love it!" She said before ushering him inside, "O-oh, come in, sit down. I'll make you some tea so just make yourself at home." Mai instructed her dark haired boss as she fluttered off into the kitchen.
Her heart was pounding so fast that she could hear it in her ears. She knew her face must have been as red as a tomato due to the heat she could feel rising in her face. The girl was bewildered and excited all at the same time. Naru, the cold narcissist on the surface, who only shows his gentle side to very few people, had given her a gift for Christmas. Her face burned hotter as she looked down at the silver bracelet on her wrist. It certainly was beautiful. She would have to email Madoka later to tell Luella as well that she loved the bracelet.
During the time Mai prepared tea for Naru she'd managed to calm down and only remain with a fluttering heart and a light blush residing on her cheeks. "Here's your tea." Mai said as she stepped into the living room to find Naru looking at the wall full of pictures near her tree as he sat on the couch.
"You look a lot like your mother." Naru said, it was obvious the woman in the pictures with her was her mother. Mai was a spitting image of her after all.
"Thank you I get that a lot. Oh! By the way, I got you something as well. Of course I was going to wait until New Year's Eve when everyone would be back at the office but since you're here…" She trailed off as she moved over to her tree and took out a medium sized square box which Mai then placed in front of him.
Naru eyed the blue colored box before reaching out and opening it. Inside the box was a black dress shirt and a navy blue tie to go with it. When Mai saw the shirt and tie at the mall she instantly saw Naru wearing it, even though she knew he didn't wear ties, Mai thought it would fit him perfectly. Besides she would like to see how he looked in a tie.
There was an excited grin on her face as Naru touched the tie before looking up at her, "Thank you, the tie is a nice touch."
"I'm glad you like it." Mai exclaimed with a beaming smile, "I had to ask Lin for your size so it should fit right." At that moment her mind came back to her previous question when she first saw her dark haired boss.
"So uhmm, what brings you here... I figured you might still be in England spending the holidays with your parents."
Naru took a sip of his tea before answering, "I had some left over work here that needed attending to immediately so I came back to finish it."
He came back on Christmas to do work instead of staying with his family over the holidays? Was that really why he came back? Seemed likely considering Naru is a workaholic but something still didn't seem right.
"You really left before Christmas to come do unfinished work? Were your parents not upset?" Mai pressed with a concerned tone. There was no way that work was more important than spending time with his family on Christmas. Not unless it pained him to be there since Gene was finally laid to rest but still it seemed very unlikely.
"Yes, it was urgent. Martin understood, Luella however was very upset but I told her that I would be flying back on New Year's Day to stay with her for a month while Martin goes to America for an investigation." Naru said, also informing her he'd be gone for a while, "Lin will be in charge while I'm gone though."
And what could be so important he had to do to leave. Luella must have been terribly hurt, she was going to have to spend Christmas without Naru or Gene. Suddenly she felt the need to scold him but it seemed Naru was going to make up for it so she said nothing. Instead she went back to her original question. "I see, that still doesn't tell me why you came over though? Not that I mind, I am enjoying your company!" She added on quickly not trying to make it sound like she didn't enjoy him being there.
"I figured I would stop by on my way home to give you your gift before I forgot about it." His answer was nonchalant but something was so off about him. He was...totally different from how he was last year. Because last year after the case at Father Tojo's church Naru seemed to be reluctant in even having a Christmas party and sharing gifts at the office. Now this year all of the sudden he was spending Christmas with her and had even brought her a gift. Mai couldn't quite put her finger on it but red flags - good ones - were alerting her that something was definitely up.
"Ohh! Well, I'm glad you stopped by it was weird since everyone is gone." Yes it was weird that everyone was gone, and if she were honest she would've said she was lonely but she would never let anyone know that she was. Mai didn't want anyone to feel sorry for her.
There was a pause as Naru took a drink of his tea before handing the cup over to her, "Yes and it's a lot more quiet as well."
Mai being in her normal 'bring Naru tea routine', took the cup from Naru and stood to fetch him more tea. A small laugh escaped her lips, "Ohh come on, don't tell me you don't miss the bickering between Ayako and Bou-chan with John trying to break them up while Yasu made it worse."
"No, I don't miss it at all." He said coolly as his eyes followed her retreating figure as she disappeared into the kitchen.
Laughter echoed from the kitchen as Mai turned on the stove eye and filled the kettle with water. Once the kettle as on the stove eye she moved out of the kitchen towards the living room where she saw Naru get up and move over to her pictures. His expression was blank and he didn't seem to notice she was there. She watched in silence as he picked one up a picture of her and her mother. Suddenly she held her breath and hoped he wasn't using psychometry to look at that event in her life. Not that it would be bad if he did but she didn't want him straining himself. From what she understood when Naru used his psychic abilities it took a toll on him, especially if he used his PK. When he put the picture down only a second later after he looked at it she spoke, "Have you eaten dinner?"
Naru turned to look at her, "Not yet I was going to get something on the way home once I left."
"Oh...well, I was going to cook Udon soup with poultry balls if you want to stay for dinner so you don't have to spend your money on take out?" That was part of the reason why she wanted him to stay, the other reasons were because she wanted to express her gratitude for the bracelet. It looked expensive. Secondly because she didn't want him to leave. Sure he could be rude and narcissistic but he was still a kind person, deep -very deep- down inside. Plus it was nice having him to herself, sure it was selfish of her but...Naru coming by to see her today was the best Christmas present she'd ever gotten.
For a moment it seemed as if Naru was debating on whether or not to stay. At that moment the kettle sounded, "Ahh let me get your tea." Mai said as she scampered off into the kitchen. Her heart was racing now as she hoped he would stay. At least for dinner then he could leave, it was getting bad outside and she didn't want to keep him out too late. Luckily Udon nor the poultry balls never took too long to make. As she poured his tea Naru stepped into the kitchen, giving her an answer.
"I'll take you up on your offer but I'm supervising. The thought of you cooking worries me considering how accident prone you are."
Mai scowled, "Hey! I do just fine in the kitchen for your information! So just stand of there and look pretty while I work my magic." The girl wasn't complimenting him in anyway shape or form, nor was she flirting with him, but by his reaction he must have taken it that way.
"You don't have to tell me to do something that I already am currently doing." At this time he took a sip of his tea as Mai moved around her kitchen to the cabinets and the fridge to retrieve ingredients and utensils she'd need to prepare their dinner.
"Narcissist." She said under her breath, but she didn't actually mean it as an insult. They often spoke to each other like this on a daily basis. Back and forth bickering, whether it be rude comments or glares, over the year this had become their daily interaction patterns.
Apparently he had not heard her because he didn't say anything back, nor did he bother her while she was cooking, that is until he finished his tea. She was making the poultry balls as the Udon simmered in a pot when she noticed Naru grabbing the kettle. "Oh I can make that for you." Mai said as she went to usher him away from making tea but he didn't move.
"No worries, I don't want you to get distracted and hurt yourself." Another insult. Sometimes it bothered Mai that he teased her so much but another part of her was glad he even spoke to her at all. She had been so worried things wouldn't go back to normal after Gene's death, after she confessed to him but it'd been a year and things did go back to normal. Sure they had changed their ways of communication and he was at her house now...and he had gotten her a gift for the first time since he'd known her but still, everything was normal.
With a huff Mai waited until he put the kettle on the eye before she reached out with fingers covered in the ingredients from the poultry balls and smeared a small amount of the substance on Naru's cheek. The boy flinched and then glared at the brunette, at first she thought she made him mad so she stuck out her tongue at him. "That's what you get." She said before the boy wiped off the food off of his cheek and smeared what was left on her nose.
Mai blinked and then looked at the food on her nose. She glared at Naru with flames growing large in her eyes. At that point in time she thought Naru was going to crack a smile, however all he said was, "That's what you get." His tone was mocking as a smirk appeared on his face. Naru then poured himself a cup of tea and moved over to the other said away from her to give her space to finish cooking.
When the balls of chicken and vegetables were boiling with the soup Mai turned the stove down on low and made herself a cup of tea as well. That's when she looked over at Naru who seemed to be lost in thought, "A penny for your thoughts Naru?" Mai asked as she wandered over to him with a smile.
"I could tell you, but it might be beyond your comprehension." There he went baiting her into another argument. Why he had to always insult her intelligence she didn't know.
"You know I'm a lot smarter than I look, and I have been studying harder as well. I was in the top twenty of my class this year you know." She said defensively with a proud look.
"Could've fooled me."
Mai's eye twitched, "...you...you narcissistic egoist. At least I don't have a personality disorder." She said with a humph as she turned to check on the soup. He was always putting her intelligence down but she knew he didn't really mean it. If she were to ask him honestly she knew he would tell her she was a very competent person and a good worker. He'd said so before anyway and commented on her thoughtfulness when necessary.
"Yes but, that still doesn't over shadow intelligence."
"I still know more than you do in the terms of history, language, and literature. Maybe not in parapsychology and science. However that's still three against two."
"If that what helps you sleep at night." Naru said in a light tone as he took another sip of his tea.
A growl came from Mai as she turned the oven off, "Well it does because it's a fact." She said with a fierce glare before going over to him to reach the cabinets behind him. "Now, excuse me so I can get bowls." She said ushering him to the side.
He moved a step away from her, and as she struggled to stretch up to reach the bowls Naru set his tea down on the counter and stepped behind her. Mai didn't notice his presence until she felt Naru against her as he reached over her and took down two bowls. Her eyes went wide and as she turned to look up at him, he was closing the cabinet door and handing her the bowls as he stared down at her with taunting blue eyes. "Are these what you wanted?"
Her face become red hot as she noticed how close he was to her. They were practically touching and the light scent of his cologne was making her swoon. He smelt like tea herbs and his eyes had so easily captivated hers that all she could do was stare back at him with wide eyes. She noticed how long and elegant his lashes were and his lips, they looked smooth and soft. Her heart was about to leap out of her chest as the desire to know what his lips felt like against hers became strong. After a moment she snapped out of her daze and took the bowls from him, accidently brushing her fingers against his as she did so. It brought back memories of how soft his hands were during their most dangerous case they had taken on before they found Gene's body, it was when Naru had took her hand as they had failed to find their way out of the haunted school house. Her cheeks became a darker red as she let her eyes fall to the floor, "T-t-thanks." She said quickly before going over to the stove to fill their bowls with soup.
Luckily Naru remained in his spot, however she knew he had to be inwardly enjoying her frazzled state of mind at the moment. That damned narcissist. She said in her mind as she brought their bowls over to the table that took up the other half of her small kitchen. The utensils came next and she made them both a fresh cup of tea before sitting down at the table with the dark haired scientist.
She watched from under her lashes as Naru ate, he took one bite and then after a moment he began to eat. By the way he was steadily eating, with the manners of a British man, she guessed he liked it. Or maybe he was acting like he was. The two ate in silence and as Mai was about to finish her soup when Naru spoke.
"The soup was delicious." He said before taking a sip of his tea.
Mai blushed and looked up at Naru for a moment before taking the last bite of her soup and finishing herself. "Thank you, my mom always made it for Christmas." She paused then tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "She would only make it for Christmas, no matter how much I begged her to make it during another time of year." A small chuckle came from her as she gave Naru a smile.
"A tradition of sorts?" Naru inquired, it seemed he'd taken interest in her story.
Mai took a sip of her tea then smiled softly, "I guess you could say that. My grandmother had started it according to mom. Mom said when she was my age her family was very poor so around Christmas my grandmother would indulge and make this soup as a special treat. It wasn't much but it was better than rice and fish every day, my mother would say." Her smile became wider, "So she kind of carried on that tradition from her childhood into the family."
There was a distant look in her eyes but her lips held a smile. She found there was no reason to cry over her mother anymore. She had special memories of her and she decided she would cherish them with a smile instead of tears. "What about you?" Mai asked.
Naru looked at her strangely then Mai rephrased her question, "I mean, do you have any special traditions at your house during the holidays?"
Silence fell between the two and Naru took the last drink of his tea before answering. "Not really, however Luella does have this annoying tendency to hang the mistletoe above the main entry way from the dining room that would lead into the largest sitting room of the house where we would open presents." He paused due to the confusion on Mai's face.
"Mistletoe?" She inquired confused.
"It's a plant in which two lovers kiss under, according to the tradition." He answered flatly as if he were answering a stupid question.
"Ohhh?" She said softly, as if asking him to continue his story with the question in her tone. Mai wondered who he had to end up kissing, since that obviously had to be the reason why he seemed to oppose the tradition so much.
"Anyway, one Christmas my brother and I were bickering over a matter, one that I can't remember, and unfortunately I had caught him under the mistletoe when he attempted to flee into the sitting room…" His tone wandered off and it was apparent to Mai that whatever happened next he wasn't telling.
"And?"
"And, it's not that hard to figure out what happened next." Naru's voice held slight irritation, and Mai could only guess that what had happened that he wasn't going to say was that he and Gene had to kiss on another.
"You and Gene?" She gasped, throwing a hand over her mouth to hide her smile.
Naru didn't say a word he only looked away from her, "But, I don't understand. There is no way I can see you two doing that just because of a tradition. At least not you anyway." Mai commented.
A sigh came from Naru and apparently he was letting her in on the incident to save his pride, "Actually Luella was the one who pointed it out, and Gene had only used the tradition as an excuse to anger me even more than I already was. Needless to say a lot of fine china was broken that Christmas."
Mai pursed her lips into a hard line as she imagined Gene plastering his lips on Naru's under an entry way between two rooms of the house. The next moment she let out a giggle because she could see Naru's face become distorted with anger as his brother kissed him in her mind's eye. "I'm sorry." Mai managed to let out after she let out a full on fit of giggles while Naru only looked away from her looking rather embarrassed.
"How old were the two of you at the time?" She imagined them as children but by the look on Naru's face that could not have been the case. Usually one didn't find what they did as a child embarrassing.
"Fourteen." He said shortly before pushing his tea cup toward her, "Now if you're done giggling make me some tea."
The giggling Mai took the boy's cup as she tried to contain herself. Fourteen, oh now that was something. The image in her imagination became different now from the new information. She could now see two dark haired teens in an entry way under some sort of plant hanging there in the door way. Naru grabbing a hold of Gene and as he did so, she could see Luella putting a pause in the argument to point out where the two of them were. She could see Gene looking up at the plant and then giving the confused Naru a devious smile before pulling him to him to plaster his lips on Naru's. And then...The girl let out a stifled laugh as she could see Naru's face distort in full rage as his brother only grinned after wards.
"I'm glad you find my embarrassment amusing." Naru said from the table as Mai made him tea.
"Oh come now Naru, it's not like anyone important saw, or even took pictures."
Silence.
Mai turned to look at the great Oliver Davis in shock as she stared at him in disbelief. "Who took the picture?" She asked curiously, still in shock.
"Who do you think?"
Mai thought for a moment, supposing it was his mother. "Your mother?"
A long sigh came from Naru, he always acted as if she should know these things. "No, my mentor at the time -"
"Madoka? Madoka took the picture?" Mai said in surprise as the tea kettle went off with a resounding high pitched whistle. She sort of felt sorry for the boy now, but in her mind she made sure she would ask Madoka to see these pictures later on. Surely the pictures would do her imagination justice.
"Unfortunately." A smirk came upon the narcissist's lips, "However I made sure that her camera wouldn't be working again any time soon or ever again."
Mai sat Naru's tea down in front of him as she cleared away their bowls and put them into the sink. "Now that was just cruel Naru."
"That's what she said, but I would do it again were something like that to reoccur. Which if it does I will make sure to punish who ever hangs a mistletoe in my office."
Apparently that was a warning to hear in case she got any bright ideas. However she was sure that would cause more commotion than need be for sure. "Don't worry, you have my word that I won't do it. But then again if you insult my intelligence again I might make sure there's one hanging above you and Masako." She threatened knowing how Masako used to black mail Naru into doing a lot of things he objected to, there for making him rather annoyed with the girl. An angered glare came from Naru over to her but she only smiled deviously.
Of course she knew that Naru didn't like Masako, which is why she didn't mind making such a threat seeing as the girl annoyed him in the past. However his retort made her think otherwise. "It's still a more preferred situation than my sibling kissing me fully on the lips. At least it's a girl."
Mai's eye itched and she knew he had baited her in, for his eyes twinkled with amusement as he watched her jealousy levels rise. "If that's the case then I'll make sure it's with Yasuhara then! He did say he found you quite handsome." Mai said in a sweet voice as she slid into the chair across from him with a devious smile.
Their gaze met and Mai still held her smile as Naru's lips held a frown but then his expression changed and he took a drink of the hot tea before speaking. "Too bad he wouldn't ever betray his dear Takigawa, he did say he favored the monk over me."
Mai's smile failed and then she let out a huff. Every time she thought she had him cornered she was wrong. He always managed to corner her and she hated it. She never got the one up on him.
It wasn't before long Naru finished his tea and looked at the time on his watch. "I should be going before it gets too late." He said and Mai stood as he did. The girl didn't want him to leave she was enjoying his presence way too much. She wished there was something that could make him stay for just a little bit longer but she wasn't going to push him too much.
"Alright don't forget your present." She said as she got his jacket that was on the back of the couch in the living room and helped him with his things. After she made sure he had everything with him was when the time she was dreading finally came about.
"Be careful going home, also call me if you need any help around the office." She said as he put on his shoes, it wasn't like she had anything else to do while everyone was gone. She was by herself after all.
"I will, thanks for dinner it was delicious. Thank you for the shirt and tie as well." He said as he went out the door, "Merry Christmas Mai."
A blush came across the girl's cheeks. "No problem, be safe. Thank you again for the bracelet" She said then smiled as she watched him go out into the cool winter air. "Merry Christmas to you too Naru."
After that he left and she watched as the snowflakes fell around him as he walked away from her apartment complex. She couldn't help but wonder if tonight was real, and if it was then why did he suddenly decide to check on her? There was that question again. He knew that the others were gone but for all he knew she could've been with her friends unless someone told him she was alone for that year. But the only people who knew that were Lin and Yasuhara. Her eyes narrowed, it was probably Yasuhara who told Naru about her being alone. But honestly she couldn't imagine Naru complying with a request from Yasuhara to check on her, because knowing Yasu he probably would've made an underlying joke with the request. Thus Naru wouldn't have taken it.
She frowned. Could Lin have said something? Perhaps but she doubted the man would suggest that Naru stop by her house like he did. Suggesting a phone call to check on her would seem like something Lin would do, and Naru as well. Why Naru actually gave her a personal visit besides 'stopping by on his way home' was beyond her. There had to be another reason. Naru wasn't the type of person to casually stop by. She locked her door and fingered the bracelet on her wrist. She smiled as she looked over it again, it was beautiful and looked elegant on her wrist. Luella had great taste.
Regardless of the real reason Naru stopped by Mai was glad that she had someone to spend Christmas with, and she was even more delighted that it was Naru. It was the best Christmas present that she could ever ask for.
A/N : Sorry for the long absence, it took me a bit to remember what my email and password was to long in! But I'm back. I wanted to post this on Christmas, but better late than never. I'll post an update on my profile soon about what I plan to do on here again. As I looked back on my previous fanfictions I found that the way I write Naru was slightly off character, and since I've been reading The Transfer by Malindorie (who writes Naru very well in my point of view) and thinking back to the manga and how Naru acts around Mai often, I'm hoping now with those references Naru is more in character in my stories now. Anyway, I plan to write another story that goes with this for new years so be prepared I plan to surprise you guys with one then too ;) There is fore shadowing in the story so can you guess what I'll be writing about in my second chapter? ;) Also go read Transfer by Malindorie senpai, it's really good!